Pages

'I am simply a 'book drunkard.' Books have the same irresistible temptation for me that liquor has for its devotee. I cannot withstand them.' L.M. Montgomery

'There are no faster or firmer friendships than those formed between people who love the same books.' Irving Stone

Tuesday, September 13, 2016

Lockerbie Scotland

A quick stop off at Lockerbie on our trek through the Dumfries and Galloway area. Lockerbie means Lockard's Town in old Norse, the town dating back to around AD 900 and Viking influence. It had been the home to Scotland's largest lamb market in the 1800's with upwards of 30,000 - 50,000 sheep in town during the week of market time. Thats a lot of sheep! The center of downtown has monuments to that history...

An impressive Town Hall with clock tower and a lovely War Memorial...

Lockerbie is probably most famous now for the crash of the Pan Am Flight 103. In 1988 a terrorist bomb exploded on the plane and the it went down over Lockerbie killing 11 people on the ground and all onboard the aircraft, a total of 270 from 20 different countries. There is a lovely Remembrance garden in the cemetery for those who lost their lives that day...

It's a lovely town and there is several interesting things around it to check out if you have more time.
About a mile and half south of Lockerbie there is the remains of the Hallmuir POW camp and Ukrainian Chapel. We didn't even know it existed when we were there! But if you ever go to Lockerbie be sure to put it on your to see list! It is a really interesting story. The chapel is still used today. You can read all about it and see pictures here.

To the west of Lockerbie is the Battle of Dryfe Sands. In 1573 Clan Johnstone fought Clan Maxwell, nearly exterminating the Clan Maxwell.

What a beautiful town! I'm glad you included a photos of the Remembrance Garden. The Pan Am crash hit out area especially hard - over 20 students from Syracuse University (returning home for Christmas from their study abroad semester) and another couple from the area were among the victims. Hard to believe it was that long ago...